your guide to indian rules and regulations

MMS Archives

January 25, 2010

Notice of Availability of the Revised Minerals Management Service Documentation of Section 106 Finding of Adverse Effect (Revised Finding) for the Proposed Cape Wind Energy Project Located on the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) in Nantucket Sound

SUMMARY: The MMS has prepared a revised version of its Section 106
Finding of Adverse Effect document related to the proposed Cape Wind
Energy Project pursuant to implementing regulations for Section 106 of
the National Historic Preservation Act (36 CFR Part 800). The original
Finding of Adverse Effect for this project was dated January 29, 2009.
The Finding of Adverse Effect is being revised in response to new
information that five additional properties within the Area of Adverse
Effect for the project have now been found to be eligible for inclusion
in the National Register of Historic Places.

September 30, 2008

List of Programs Eligible for Inclusion in Fiscal Year 2009 Funding Agreements To Be Negotiated With Self-Governance Tribes

This notice lists programs or portions of programs that are
eligible for inclusion in Fiscal Year 2009 funding agreements with
self-governance tribes and lists programmatic targets according
to section 405(c)(4) of the Tribal Self-Governance Act.

April 29, 2008

Major Portion Prices and Due Date for Additional Royalty Payments on Indian Gas Production in Designated Areas Not Associated With an Index Zone

SUMMARY: Final regulations for valuing gas produced from Indian leases,
published August 10, 1999, require MMS to determine major portion
prices and notify industry by publishing the prices in the Federal
Register. The regulations also require MMS to publish a due date for
industry to pay additional royalty based on the major portion prices.
This notice provides the major portion prices for the 12 months of
2006.

April 28, 2008

Notice of Intent To Establish an Indian Oil Valuation Negotiated Rulemaking Committee

SUMMARY: The Minerals Management Service (MMS) is announcing its intent
to establish an Indian Oil Valuation Negotiated Rulemaking Committee
(Committee). The Committee will develop specific recommendations
regarding proposed revisions to the existing Indian Oil regulations for
oil production from Indian leases, especially the major portion
valuation requirement. The Committee will include representatives of
parties who would be affected by a final rule. The MMS solicits
comments on this initiative and requests interested parties to nominate
representatives for membership on the Committee.

List of Programs Eligible for Inclusion in Fiscal Year 2008 Funding Agreements To Be Negotiated With Self-Governance Tribes

December 17, 2007

Indian Oil Valuation

SUMMARY: The Minerals Management Service (MMS) is amending the existing
regulations regarding valuation, for royalty purposes, of oil produced
from Indian leases. These amendments will clarify and update the
existing regulations.

September 17, 2007

SUMMARY: On August 23, 2007, pursuant to 30 CFR 256 and 40 CFR 1501.7
as a matter of information to the public, the MMS published in the
Federal Register a Call for Information and Nomination and Notice of
Intent to Prepare an EIS for the Beaufort Sea and Chukchi Sea OCS
planning areas. The Call is the initial step of a multiple sale process
that incorporates planning and analysis for the Alaska lease sales
included in the proposed final OCS Oil and Gas Leasing Program 2007-
2012. We inadvertently omitted a page-size map of the Beaufort Sea
Planning Area which should have accompanied a page-size map of the
Chukchi Sea Planning Area and instead included two duplicate page-size
maps of the Chukchi Sea Planning Area. The correct Beaufort Sea
Planning Area map accompanies this notice.

June 14, 2007

SUMMARY: The proposed federal action addressed in this FEIS (OCS EIS/EA
MMS 2007-026) is to offer for lease areas in the Chukchi Sea Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) that might
contain recoverable oil and gas resources. This lease sale would
provide qualified bidders the opportunity to bid on certain blocks in
the Chukchi Sea OCS to gain conditional rights to explore, develop, and
produce oil and natural gas. This FEIS is the National Environmental
Policy Act (NEPA) analysis to enable the MMS to make informed decisions
on the configuration of the lease sale and the applicable mitigation
measures. In the FEIS, the potential direct, indirect, and cumulative
environmental impacts of the sale, including estimated exploration and
development and production activities related to the sale, on the
physical, biological, and human environments in the Chukchi Sea area
are analyzed. The FEIS also provides NEPA evaluation for exploration
activities in the Chukchi Sea, including seismic survey geophysical
permitting (30 CFR part 251), ancillary activities (30 CFR 250.207),
and exploration plans (30 CFR 250.214). In addition, the FEIS provides
information that the U.S. Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration, National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS)
may possibly use for issuance of Incidental Harassment Authorizations
to the seismic-survey industry to take marine mammals by harassment,
incidental to conducting prelease and ancillary on-lease oil and gas
seismic surveys in the Chukchi Sea. To address its NEPA
responsibilities, the NMFS is a cooperating agency (as that term is
defined in 40 CFR 1501.6).

May 2, 2007

SUMMARY: The MMS is promulgating new regulations to implement the
provisions of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (EPAct) governing the
payment of royalty on geothermal resources produced from Federal leases
and the payment of direct use fees in lieu of royalties. The EPAct
provisions amend the Geothermal Steam Act of 1970 (GSA). The new
regulations amend the current MMS geothermal royalty valuation
regulations and simplify the royalty and direct use fee calculations
for geothermal resources for leases issued under the EPAct and leases
whose terms are modified under the EPAct. The new regulations also
amend various related provisions in the MMS rules.

April 24, 2007

Notice and Agenda for Meeting of the Royalty Policy Committee

SUMMARY: This notice announces the May 10 meeting of the Royalty Policy
Committee (RPC). Agenda items for the meeting of the RPC will include
remarks from the Director, MMS, and the Associate Director, Minerals
Revenue Management (MRM), as well as presentations on the MRM Financial
Management, Audit and Compliance, and Enforcement Programs. Updates
will be provided by the Federal Oil and Gas Valuation, Oil and Gas
Royalty Reporting, Coal, Indian Oil Valuation, and Royalty Management
subcommittees. The RPC membership includes representation from states,
Indian Tribes, various mineral interests, the public-at-large (with
knowledge and interest in royalty issues), and other Federal
departments.

March 8, 2007

Notice Terminating the Exclusion of Indian Allotted Leases in the Uintah and Ouray Reservation From Valuation Under 30 CFR 206.172

SUMMARY: The Minerals Management Service (MMS) with Bureau of Indian
Affairs (BIA) concurrence is terminating the exclusion from valuation
under the rules at 30 CFR 206.172 for gas produced from the Ute
allotted leases in the Uintah and Ouray Reservation (Reservation),
Utah. The final rule was published in the Federal Register on August
10, 1999 (64 FR 43506).

March 7, 2007

SUMMARY: To comply with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), we
are inviting comments on a collection of information that we will
submit to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and
approval. The title of this information collection request (ICR) is
``30 CFR Part 206--Product Valuation, Subparts F and J; Part 210--Forms
and Reports, Subparts E and H; and Part 218--Collection of Royalties,
Rentals, Bonuses and Other Monies Due the Federal Government, Subpart
E.'' We changed the title of this ICR to clarify the regulatory
language we are covering under 30 CFR parts 206, 210, and 218 and to
reflect OMB consolidation approval of two solid mineral-related ICRs.

January 18, 2007

Major Portion Prices and Due Date for Additional Royalty Payments on Indian Gas Production in Designated Areas Not Associated With an Index Zone

SUMMARY: Final regulations for valuing gas produced from Indian leases,
published on August 10, 1999, require MMS to determine major portion
prices and notify industry by publishing the prices in the Federal
Register. The regulations also require MMS to publish a due date for
industry to pay additional royalty based on the major portion prices.
This notice provides the major portion prices for the 12 months of
2005. The due date to pay additional royalties based on the major
portion prices is 60 days after the publication date of this notice.